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THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW – JANUARY 2020 – Graphic Design services provided by County of Ventura GSA Business Support PHOTO CREDITS Michael Coons/Acorn Newspapers • Greg Doyle THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW | JANUARY 2020 Table of Contents Executive Summary ..........................................................1 Hill & Woolsey Fires Brief ................................................2 Hill & Woolsey Fires Timeline .....................................2–5 After-Action Review Analysis ...........................................6 Board of Supervisors – Community Questions & Responses ..................................................................9 Improvement Plan Performance Matrix .........................13 Map Appendix ................................................................18 Participating Agencies .....................................................22 COUNTY OF VENTURA | THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW This page intentionally left blank THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW | JANUARY 2020 Executive Summary The Hill & Woolsey Fires After-Action Review process began informally during the incidents, allowing critical areas to be corrected in a timely manner. The Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved an after-action review methodology that established the formal process, which began in August of 2019. The objective of this after-action review is to measure strengths, identify challenges and to recommend potential areas for improvement observed during the response phase of the incident. The process included representation from over forty organizations from all levels of government, as well as non-governmental, community and non-profit organizations. This after-action review focuses on key functional areas that will serve as a framework to enhance future emergency response efforts. The functional areas include: Operational Area Coordination; Incident Management; Public Information and Emergency Notifications; Mass Care and Shelter; and Mutual Aid. Although this process focuses on the Hill and Woolsey Fires, it is designed to strengthen the Operational Area’s overall effectiveness in response to future emergency situations. The strengths, challenges and recommendations impact the Operational Area’s ability to respond to incidents and are not specific to any one organization. All Operational Area stakeholders share the responsibility to reinforce standards and implement solutions. Lastly, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors provided a list of thirteen questions to be addressed through this after-action review process. These questions were derived from concerns and questions raised by impacted community members during town hall meetings and through the Ventura County Emergency Operations Center hotline. COUNTY OF VENTURA | THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW 1 Hill & Woolsey Fires Brief n the eleven months between December 2017 and November 2018, Ventura County faced Ithree unique catastrophes that would test the county’s emergency planning and response efforts. All three incidents demonstrated the extraordinary preparedness of the county, our local government partners, community-based organizations and the resiliency of Ventura County residents. In December of 2017, the Thomas Fire swept through Ventura County, scorching over 280,000 acres and leaving extensive damage in its path. Not quite a year later, on November 7, 2018, at 11:20 p.m., a mass shooter entered the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks, and claimed the lives of twelve individuals, injuring twenty-one others. Among the victims was Ventura County Sheriff’s Sergeant Ron Helus, who confronted the attacker and was fatally wounded during his heroic response. The Ventura County Emergency Operations Center and the City of Thousand Oaks EOC activated in response to the Borderline Incident and provided support to the Incident Command Post, Operational Area coordination, information management, and family assistance center activities. The next day, Ventura County experienced predicted Red Flag conditions where humidity levels fell into the single digits and peak winds reached between 60-70 miles per hour. Ventura County public safety officials prepared and upstaffed in anticipation of critical fire weather conditions; however, Ventura County’s response to the Borderline Incident had already put great demand on law enforcement, fire and medical resources. continued 1447 1630 HILL & WOOLSEY First VC Alert Issued Emergency & Small for Hill Fire – Camarillo Animal Shelter Opens FIRES TIMELINE Springs – Mandatory – Borchard Community Evacuation Center Shelter Emergency Shelter Opens 1424 1500 – Rancho Santa Susanna Woolsey Emergency Shelter Community Center 0949 Fire Thousand Oaks Red Flag Start Community Center Warning 1641 Issued for 0015 Emergency Shelter Hill Fire – Wireless/ Ventura County EOC Camarillo Emergency Alerts County Activated Community Center Issued – Camarillo/TO Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018 Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018 2320 1449 1605 Borderline Woolsey Fire Woolsey Mass Shooting – 1403 initial Command Fire 1705 Mass Casualty Hill Fire Start Post established Command First VC Incident at Rocketdyne Post Alert Issued Hill Fire established Woolsey Fire – Command Post at VCFD Saddlebow in relocated to Station 43 Bell Canyon 1431 Freedom Park Hill Fire 1546 Command CHP hard closure Post – 101 FWY of North and at Camarillo Soundbound Springs Rd Lanes 101 FWY underpass 2 THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW | JANUARY 2020 During the critical fire weather event, the Hill Fire ignited at HILL & WOOLSEY 2:03 p.m. in the Hill Canyon area of Santa Rosa Valley, east FIRES STATS of Camarillo. Pushed by 30 mph winds, the Hill Fire quickly threatened lives and infrastructure, prompting evacuations in 185 Structures Destroyed Camarillo Springs, Dos Vientos, California State University at Channel Islands, and areas along the Pacific Coast Highway. 116 Structures Damaged In total, the Hill Fire burned 4,531 acres and damaged or destroyed six structures. 101,480 Total Acres Within minutes of the Hill Fire ignition, at 2:24 p.m., the Burned Woolsey Fire started at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory, south of Simi Valley at the top of Woolsey Canyon Road. 6 Emergency Shelters Evacuations were ordered for Thousand Oaks, Oak Park, Westlake Village, Bell Canyon, unincorporated areas of Over 9,000 Malibu and into Los Angeles County. The ignition’s proximity to Los Angeles County meant the potential for impacts Meals/Snacks Served across jurisdictional lines to communities in Ventura County, Los Angeles County and Los Angeles City. Threats to this 5 Large & Small shared area activated the Mutual Threat Zone Plan, a mutual- Animal Shelters aid response agreement between the Ventura County, Los Angeles County and Los Angeles City Fire Departments. 356 Animals Evacuated continued HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES TIMELINE Fire Acting 1900 Management Governor Woolsey Fire Assistance Declares State 1100 Consumes Grant Granted of Emergency Hill Fire 2,000 acres 0100 Consumes 1830 Large Animal Emergency Ventura County 4,352 acres / Woolsey Fire Shelter Opens – Shelter – Sheriff Ayub Woolsey Fire Repopulation Ventura County Thousand Oaks Proclaims Local Consumes Begins – Fair Grounds Teen Center Emergency 70,000 acres Simi Valley Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018 Friday, Nov. 9, 2018 Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018 2245 0145 Unified Recovery 1634 Federal Mandatory Emergency Coordination Hill Fire Emergency Evacuation Issued Shelter – Group Repopulation Disaster for Oak Park Goebel Established Begins – Declaration Senior Adult Cam Springs, Issued 2326 Center Dos Vientos, Woolsey Fire – Ventura County Vallecito Mobile Wireless/ Health Officer Home Park Emergency Proclaims Alerts Issued – Local Health Oak Park Emergency COUNTY OF VENTURA | THE HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFTER-ACTION REVIEW 3 At the time, the Ventura County Fire Protection District was HILL & WOOLSEY fully engaged in battling the Hill Fire, which was initially FIRES STATS perceived to be the greater threat. As the Hill Fire advanced into the burn scar left by the 2013 Springs Fire, diminished Ventura County Emergency fuel density allowed firefighters to move quickly toward Operations Center containment, freeing additional resources to contend with Hotline Calls the Woolsey Fire. 43,049 A California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) Incident Management Team was initially ordered to VCEmergency.com Page manage the Hill Fire. Due to statewide concurrent incidents Views demanding significant fire resources, the same Incident Over 2 million Management Team would be called upon to manage both the Hill and Woolsey Fires as a Complex Incident. During peak firefighting operations, Ventura County Fire, 3,929 Emergency supplemented by the fire mutual aid system, brought nearly Response Personnel 4,000 emergency response personnel, 577 fire engines and 22 aircraft to combat the fires. The Woolsey Fire burned a 577 Fire Engines total of 96,949 acres, 34,535 of those acres in Ventura County. A total of 295 structures were either damaged or destroyed 22 Aircraft in Ventura County. continued HILL & WOOLSEY FIRES TIMELINE 1000 Local Woolsey Fire Assistance Consumes Town Hall in Center opens 83,275 acres Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks Sunday, Nov. 11, 2018 Monday, Nov. 12, 2018 Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018 Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018 Town Hall in Presidential
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